Weekend of Heavy Work

Writing on Monday evening, it is hard to even remember all that happened over the weekend. We worked hard on the project of replacing the large planter next to the deck. While Bill did the hard stuff, I puttered around the yard, moving perennials, cleaning up around beds, raking a bit here and there, pruning back the spirea that was finally completely free of snow, etc. The temporary greenhouse that we had put up a couple of weeks ago blew down last week and we had to reassemble it. Luckily, nothing had been bent or broken, and we were able to reinforce our understanding of how it all goes together. Much easier the second time. Oh yes - we nailed it to the deck this time.

Bill had put the frame of his planter together last weekend, and this weekend he intended to get the cedar sides on, add the corner and top and bottom trim, and then begin the process of digging out the dirt from the old planter (which had originaly been a hot tub in the basement), breaking down the sides and tearing it all apart, then moving the new one into place, leveling it, and refilling it. The whole project took him most of the weekend, though I was free enough for most of it to get the rest of the work done.

Planted a box of Asiatic lilies and another of Oriental lilies that I bought at SAMS Club. I'm never sure about SAMS Club plants, but some have turned out very well over the years. The hostas under the weeping willow tree are fantastic year after year, and they all came from one box. Last year I grew a bunch of astilbe, and they didn't amount to much. But I'm hoping the plants survived and will be nice this year. Time will tell. None of the purchases there are very well identified, but for generic plants they do seem to do pretty well.


Some neat things: The bloodroot plant that I captured the first sprouts of last week became a clump of sprouts by Saturday morning. Then Sunday morning I found another clump of sprouts. I figured that they would bloom some time in the next week, but the warm, sunny weather made for fast growth, and by late afternoon Sunday the buds were showing color and ready to open. Amazing.


A beautiful clump of Darwin tulips comes back every year, very early, and I always forget about it until the next year. It has been very dependable, but for some reason I just forget it is there until it blooms again. It blooms early and fast, before I really even see the sprouts, and then its over before the big stuff starts.




A very lovely little bird followed me all around the east side yard as I worked. It sat in the tree or shrub nearest where I was working, flitting from one place to another as I did. Not sure what it was after. I tried to identify it, and I'm not sure if I have it right. I think it was a yellow rumped warbler. My photo is not great, but will help me remember.


Finally, not all clear signs of spring are happy.



But at the end of the day, life is good.